Sometimes it’s learning the little things that can drive golfers to near madness.

“How far do I stand from the ball?” “Am I really aligned at my target?” “Is the ball properly positioned in my stance?” These are questions that all golfers struggle with, and when players make the switch to Natural Golf, they may start the cycle all over again because of a new setup position.

“One of the biggest things we’ve always faced with new Natural Golfers was teaching them how far to stand from the ball,” says Ken Martin, one of Natural Golf’s top teaching professionals. “We could always get them positioned correctly when they came for instruction. The trouble was that when they would go practice on their own, they didn’t have any feedback mechanism to tell them if they were set up correctly.

“So, at times, new – and some seasoned – Natural Golfers would drift back to old habits from their conventional days,” Martin says. Martin believes the answer to solving stance and ball position issues for Natural Golfers has arrived in a new golf training aid called “Navigate.” The product uses positioning guides for both the feet and ball, along with a Strike Board, to help golfers achieve a proper setup. Fixes six setup positions “The Navigate actually aids the golfer with six areas of the setup,” says Truls Malm, the inventor of the product and a resident of Norway. Those six things are: target line; clubface aim; stance width; ball position; distance to ball; and body alignment.

“I started playing golf four years ago, and when I was new to the game, one of the things that I had trouble with was ball placement,” says Malm. “I had a tendency to put the ball too far from the body, which would give me an insideout swing, and I would have this big fade. The ball would go directly right.”

Malm also had trouble with alignment, he says, but then one night he figured out a product that solved those issues and a lot more.

After his first three years of playing, Malm had an 18.7 handicap index. In 2003, after his first season using the Navigate, he was down to an 8.2 handicap.

“It’s all because of the product,” he says. “Before every round, I would use the Navigate to help me get my correct stance and – what was very important for me – getting the right distance to the ball.

The Navigate, which retails for $59.95 and was redesigned to work for Natural Golfers, uses color-coded markers for the feet and ball to help the golfer set up properly every time. Once the setup is determined, a strip of white tape is placed on the shaft to line up with the white, swing-path line on the Navigate.

The Strike Board aids in placing the clubface square to the ball, thanks to a gray line that runs vertically down the middle of the board with ball placements on each side of the line. The Strike Board also clearly defines the “optimal” swing path for straight golf shots with a distinct red path graphic.

“I think the Navigate is the first training aid that I’ve seen where you can get the student positioned exactly where you want them, and then use marks on the golf clubs so they have reference points,” Martin says. “Students then can practice at home or at the driving range and get in the proper position they were taught by their instructor.

“That’s the beauty of the Navigate,” Martin says. “You need feedback to help you learn the golf swing, and the Navigate solves that problem when it comes to the setup.

“Students can learn the proper distance and ball position on their own, and I don’t have to worry that they’re struggling with where the ball is supposed to be, or how far away they’re supposed to be from the ball,” he says. “That enables me, as an instructor, to move forward and teach the game of Natural Golf.”

How to order 
To purchase the Navigate training aid designed for the Natural Golfer, call 1-888-NAT-GOLF. The product retails for $49.95. Through the month of June, Natural Golf will make a donation of 33% of their profits for each unit sold to the First Tee Program.